On Saturday afternoon we had the oppurtunity to see Howl’s Moving Castle in the theaters. Quite a treat considering it is in very limited release.

For those that do not know (shame, shame) Howl’s Moving Castle is the latest from Hayao Miyazaki and we saw the English version. It was playing in Japenese as well depending on the show but considering my son does not read yet, it was the better choice. The voice performances were very good with Billy Crystal stealing the show as Calcifer.

The film was very good. It is the first of his films that I can think of that is a pure love story, not another story with love interests. This is not to say it is a “romance” story, more that the plot is driven by a love that cannot be satisfied or obtained. The characters “short-comings” and complicated emotional states (Howl has “no heart” and Sophie is “too plain”– though I feel like this could have been better explained) makes for a compelling romance that ultimatly drives the plot forward. The side war story is complex and not as well revealed as I would like. The plot on this one is complicated and at time convoluted and murky. It is unlike his films to not have clearer resolutions. There are some events that are not well explained and the ending is very quick.

Visually the film is stunning with the castle being an amazing piece of animation. The castle has moments that remind me of Terry Gillam’s animation from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, and I mean that in a very good way. It surpases Spirited Away in visual impact and on the big screen it is truly engulfing.

Myself, Catherine and my son all enjoyed it and yes will be dropping the cash to get it when released on DVD.

Check out the film’s site. and Yahoo has a pretty beefy set up. Images provided from Yahoo Site.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 26th, 2005 at 3:54 am and is filed under General, Movies.